Characteristics and properties of United Arab Emirates fog events using meteosat second generation thermal and visible channels

Satellite remote sensing is an important tool in the detection and short range forecasting (now-casting) of fog events. Fog over land develops primarily during the late-night and pre-dawn hours, infrared remote sensing is indispensable in observing fog formation, while visible imagery helps to monitor the extent and density of fog after sunrise. On average there are more than forty five fog occurrences in UAE per year. This paper describes the methods used by EIAST for using satellite remote sensing for detecting and now-casting fog events. The temperature difference between two infrared bands (11 μm and 4 μm) forms the basis for fog detection and classification.